It's not a lack of vowels that makes them sound stupid

Weighing the pros and cons of textspeak, this essay balances the ideas that communication skills are enhanced by every means and the short-hand is short-sighted.

“These different channels of communication have led to the emergence of new communicative styles including text abbreviations and acronyms,” says Prof Merchant. According to him, writing is “enjoying a moment of creativity”, with young people at its heart.

His conclusion is that “there is no evidence that literacy is in decline, reading and writing, in whatever form, is advantageous”.

And

... textspeak is not enough. “As someone with a deep concern for English literature, and the full possibilities of the use of the language, I’m eager for children and young people to read real books as extensively as possible, so that they can absorb all the things that textspeak doesn’t cover: a large vocabulary, the shape that well-made sentences can take, how to develop ideas through language, even punctuation. I want them to experience all the pleasure that reading gives, and the satisfaction that writing well brings.”